Fur and fabric whipping machine



March 25, 1941. c. M. MoQARTx-IY FUR AND FABRIC WHIPPING MACHINE Filed Dec. 8, 193? WW v lo ,f a w M P a 5 4 n o Z M uw a JN/ wmliwhmwfmuwv Maan-nw@ l f "Jul/ f/ /4/ M W 111111.. m l ,w Z, ZV ,v Z M. Z M.. .wu 7^ a h f W 7M w M E: J ,M n M V A hmm d d M M r Patented Mar. 25, 1941 UNITED STATES :insti PATENT OFFICE FUR ANI) FABRIC WHIPPING MACHINE Charles M. McCarthy, Minneapolis, Minn.

Application December 8, 1937, Serial No. 178,721

Claims. (Cl. 15-92) This invention relates to a device for treating articles made of fur and certain fabrics. Such articles particularly articles of dress made of fur and certain fabrics are now commonly cleaned in 5 either cleaning machines or by hand processes. It is usually necessary after such cleaning to beat the fur or treat it so that it is brought back to a uniform upstanding position so as to give the best appearance. It is also the common practice l0` to place fur coats and other similar articles in cold storage during the summer months. It frequently and usually happens that after such storage the fur on the articles has been pressed down flat in Whole or in part so that the fur is not in uniform condition. In such cases it is also necessary to treat or whip the fur to bring it back to the best condtion. In most fur shops at present this treating or whipping operation is done by hand and it is usually done by the use of paddles manipulated by the operators. It is desirable to have a power driven tool or device which can readily be moved about and which will act on the fur to bring it back to its proper upstanding position so as to have its best appeartl'lCe.

It is an object of this invent-ion therefore,` to provide a simple, compact and conveniently mounted device and one which can be easily and conveniently moved about the same comprising a shaft with a plurality of flexible straps arranged for treating the fur or fabric.

It is another object of the invention toprovide such a device comprising a motor having an armature shaft and a second shaft extending r laterally adjacent one end of said motor and at right angles to said armature shaft together with means for driving `said second shaft from said armature shaft and means for conveniently suspending and manipulating said device.

It is still further an object of the invention to provide a fur treating device comprising a motor and a shaft extending laterally therefrom together with a novel form of handle for conveni- 5 ently and comfortably manipulating the device and a novel form of suspending means for suspending the device in balanced position.

'I'hese and other objects and advantages of the invention will be fully set forth in the following description made in connection with the accompanying drawing in which like reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views and in which- Fig. 1 is a View in side elevation of the device showing the same in suspended condition, some portions being broken away and others shown in vertical section;

Fig. 2 is a View in end elevation as seen from the right of Fig. 1; a portion of the supporting means being omitted; and

Fig. 3 is a partial plan View of the device.

Referring to the drawing a devi-ce is shown comprising a shaft Il). Shaft I0 is shown as having a rounded free end and the same is provided with a plurality of slots Iliav extending diametrically therethrough, the same being shown as rectangular in cross section. Said slots Ita `are equally spaced longitudinally of said shaft and while the number may be varied, in the embodiment of the invention illustrated said slots are shown as six in number. Three of said slots extend at right angles to the other three and are arranged alternately therewith. Straps Il extend through certain of the slots Itri and extend at substantially equal distances at opposite sides of the shaft Ill. Other straps I2 extend through the other slots Ia and at equal distances at either side of the shaft I0. Straps I 2 thus will be arranged alternately with the straps II. Straps II and I2 will be held in place in shaft It) by rthe screws I3 threaded into said shaft and engaging said straps at their inner ends. Screws I2 will preferably be provided with slots in their ends for convenient removal and tightening. Shaft I0 is slightly enlarged at its secured end and is journaled in bearings Illa and Mb formed adjacent one end of a motor I4. Shaft Ill has secured thereto within the casing Illc from which said bearings extend a worm wheel gear (not shown) and said worm wheel gear is in mesh with a worm gear secured to the armature shaft Idd of motor I4. Bearing Mb is illustrated as having a circular flange at one end secured in place by the screws I5. While various types of motors could be used theone that has been used in practice and which is shown in the drawing is provided adjacent one end with a Ventilating fan drawing air through the motor casing Ille and discharging the same through one or more slots at the lower end of the casing. The motor casing IIIe is illustrated as of cylindrical shape and the same has a pad |41 formed at the side thereof opposite that from which shaft I0 extends. Said pad has a plane outer surface and has secured thereto by the countersunk screws I6 one end of a handle member Il. Handle member I'I as shown is formed of a flat strip of metal having rounded edges and said handle extends upward alo-ng the pad IIlf and is then reversely bent in the arc of a circle andhas a free end portion extending parallel to the axis of motor I4, the lower end of said portion being curved outwardly slightly. A pad I8 is secured to the inner side of the handle Il by any suitable means such as by cementing and pad I8 extends slightly at either side of the handle I?. While said pad may be made of any suitable soft material, in practice it has been made of felt and the same extends from the inner side of the bent portion of handle I'I to its terminal end. A pad i 9 is provided which pad extends from the inner end of the pad I8 to the lower inner end of handle Il. Pad I9 is also secured in any suitable manner as by cement and said pad extends some distance at either side of the handle |'I and is curved to extend substantially around the motor casing Ille. While different materials might be used for pad I9, in practice it is made of soft leather. A switch 243 for starting and stopping the motor I4 is provided and positioned at one side of the motor closely ad` jacent the to-p thereof and substantially in horizontal alignment with the top of the handle I'I. Switch has a small lever 26a having a ball shaped end which is moved from side to side to shut off or turn on the motor respectively. Switch 20 is so positioned that it can be conveniently operated by the thumb or finger of the opera-tor when his hand is in operative relation to the device. A bail member 2| is provided also formed of a comparatively thin strip of metal, the same having a semi-cylindrical top portion with straight sides extending along the sides of the motor I li. Said bail is secured by the screws 22 adjacent its ends which are threaded into casing Ille. Said bail also ts over projections or pins 23 extending from the motor casing. It will be noted that member 2| extends upwardly from substantially the center of the motor at an angle and toward the side of the motor from which shaft II) projects. rIhe upper end member 2| is thus at one side of the axis of the motor and armature shaft. Member 2| has an eyelet 24 secured in its upper end and shown as riveted therein. Eyelet 24 forms the supporting means for the device and the same is shown engaged by a snap hook 25 secured to the lower end of a cord or cable 25, the upper end of which is provided with a loop 26a connected by a link 2l to a loop 25a formed on the lower end of a flexible strip 28 extending into a casing 29. Casing 29 is shown as having a flat bottom and a semi-cylindrical upper portion. Member 28 is in the form of a fiat strap and has connected to one end a spiral tensile spring of flat material disposed in casing 29 and one end of which will be secured to a shaft Sil disposed in casing 29 and having portions 30a journaled in the sides thereof. The said spring resiliently supports the device and strap 28 can move more or less out of casing 29 as the device is supported and moves about.

In operation the device is mounted as shown in Fig. l. The operator preferably places his hand within handle Il with the palm of the hand against the pad I8. This hand can thus extend around motor casing Ille very comfortable and the back of the hand is pressed against pad I8. In this manner the device can be very conveniently and effectively manipulated to bring the straps II and I2 into contact with the garment surface whether the same is vertical, horizontal or in any other position. The motor can be conveniently controlled by the'operator by moving switch lever 25a with his thumb or finger. The straps II and I2 are rotated at'the desired speed and are brought so that they strike against the garment and whip up the fur or fabric to the desired condition. By the use of the device the fur is brought to the best possible condition and a very uniform effect can be produced.

The present device is an improvement upon that shown in applicants (zo-pending application S. N. 155,650.

By having the shaft I0 project at right angles to the armature shaft and driven from the latter a more satisfactory arrangement as to speed can be had. Also by having the strap shaft I at right angles to the armature shaft the gyroscopic effect produced by rotation of the parts is greatly reduced. The device can be much more easily moved into different positions at different angles than when all of the parts rotate about one axis. By having the member 2| extending to one side of the axis of the armature shaft the device is suspended in balanced condition or so that shaft I0 is normally horizontal. At the same time the suspending cable 26 is not spaced far from the axis of the armature shaft or the axis of the motor. The axis of the motor thus does not have to move very far out of alignment with the suspending cable 25 in the various movements of the device. These advantages over the device shown in the previous application are very pronounced in practice. It is also very convenient to have the switch located where it can be readily operated by the operator at any time while he is using the device.

The device has been amply demonstrated in actual practice and found to be very successful and efficient. The same has been received with enthusiasm where it has been used in fur establishments.

It will, of course, be understood that various changes may be made in the form, details, arrangement and proportions of the parts, without departing from the scope of applicants invention, which generally stated, consists in a device capable of carrying out the objects above set forth, in the parts and combinations of parts disclosed and defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

.1. In a device for treating fur or fur fabrics having a substantially horizontal beater shaft and a motor for driving the same, said motor having a cylindrical casing with a substantially vertical axis, the combination of a pad extending concentric with the surface of said casing adjacent thereto and a handle extending upwardly from the top central portion of said pad and reversely curved to extend substantially paralle] thereto and having a free lower end.

2. In a device for treating fur or fur fabrics constructed and arranged to be suspended by a flexible member and counter-balanced, the combination of a motor having its armature shaft extending substantially vertically, a beater shaft extending at right angles to said armature shaft, gearing connecting said shafts to drive said beater shaft at a different speed from said armature shaft, a handle for manipulating said device secured to the side of said motor at the side opposite said beater shaft and a suspension member secured to the sides of said motor and extending above said armature shaft, the same having means for attachment to said flexible member disposed in a vertical plane passing through the center of gravity of said device whereby said beater shaft will be disposed in substantially horizontal position.

3. In a device for treating fur or fur fabrics comprising a beater shaft arranged to normally manipulated with said device, said motor having its armature shaft disposed vertically and having a casing secured thereto into which said beater shaft extends, a reduction gearing in said casing between said armature shaft and beater shaft for driving the latter at much less speed than saidmotor, a handle secured at one cylindrical side o-f said motor opposite said beater shaft and a suspension means extending vertically from and secured to said motor.

4. In a device for treating fur or fur fabrics comprising a beater shaft arranged to normally "be disposed horizontally and beaters secured to said shaft, the combination of a motor adapted to be moved and manipulated with said device, said motor having its armature shaft disposed `vertically and having a casing secured thereto into which said beater shaft extends, a handle secured to the cylindrical side of said motor opposite said beater shaft for manipulating said device and a bail projecting upward from said motor over said armature shaft having its ends secured to the sides of said motor and extending at an angle toward the side of said motor adjacent said beater shaft and a suspension means connected to the upper end of said bail whereby said suspension means is substantially vertically alined with the center of gravity of said device so that said beater shaft is normally maintained in horizontal position.

5. In a device for treating fur or fur fabrics comprising a beater shaft arranged to normally be disposed horizontally and beaters secured to said shaft, the combination of a motor adapted to be manipulated with said device, said motor having its armature shaft disposed vertically and having a casing secured thereto into which said beater shaft extends, a bail bracket extending over said motor and armature shaft and having side portions secured to the sides of said motor, a flexible supporting means swivelly connected to the top of said bracket, said bracket extending at an angle to the vertical and toward the side of said motor on which said beater shaft is disposed so that the center of said supporting means extends substantially through the center of gravity of said device so that said device is normally balanced with said beater shaft in horizontal position.

CHARLES M. McCARTI-IY. 

